The Philippines is famous for its citizens who can speak and understand English well. That is the reason a lot of call center businesses and English Tutorial schools are sprouting everywhere all over the country.

However, even though majority of the population is knowledgeable in English, it is still not the official language here. We are Filipinos after all, and our national language is Filipino.

Thus, netizens were at rage regarding an incident involving Spongecola’s front singer Yael Yuzon and a local mall. Yuzon was the opening act during a launch of a mobile phone.

According to a report from Rappler, the vocalist claimed he was not allowed to speak his native language during his performance because the SM Megamall management said he was on the posh part of the mall. Since the singer’s group `is famous for its OPM songs, he had to find a way to go over the rule.

Yael Translating their Hitsong Jeepney to English Version

When he was about to sing his band’s famous song entitled Jeepney, he had to resort to translating the lyrics on the spot. He then shared the video of his performance on his Instagram account.

The video received mix reactions from netizens with some cringing at the lyrics and others admiring Yuzon’s quick thinking. Meanwhile, the mall’s management had been tremendously bashed for the alleged policy they are implementing.

SM Megamall’s management sent this response to PEP when asked for a comment regarding the incident.

“We would like to clarify the information being circulated online regarding performances that happen in our malls.

“We would like to reiterate that we promote all international and local entertainment acts in all our mall event areas nationwide. Moreover, we have been a proud supporter of the Filipino Talent as we promote many celebrity and movie mall tours as week-long celebrations of Independence Day and Linggo ng Wika.

“We are now looking into this matter carefully and will reach out to the concerned party. We apologize for any inconvenience this incident may have caused at this time.”

As they say, there are two sides to every story. However, local businesses should be the front runner when supporting the OPM industry.